SNOW hits Britain: Schools closed, flights delayed & heavy traffic amid weather chaos

BRITAIN woke up to SNOW this morning as schools were closed, flights delayed and commuters faced hazardous road conditions.

The north of England has been blanketed, with as much as 10cm of snow reported on high ground.

Leeds Bradford Airport was forced to close as crews work to clear the runway, which could cause delays to flights later today.

A spokesman said: "We have had 5cm of snow, it started at 1am. The snow-clearing teams are out on the runway making sure we can reopen as soon as possible."

Eight schools in Leeds, 20 in East Lancashire and 28 in West Yorkshire are closed.

The Met Office has warned motorists to allow extra time for journeys because of icy conditions on the roads.

Weather warnings have been issued for Northern Ireland, north Wales, northern and western England and Scotland as a frontal system came in from the Atlantic.

By the early hours of this morning just over an inch had fallen across high ground in northern England.

Similar snowfall was recorded at Leek in Staffordshire and Shap in Cumbria, and several A roads were closed over the high Pennines in south Yorkshire.

Strong, north-easterly winds and wintry showers in many places will ensure temperatures remain below normal at least until the middle of next week.

The Met Office yellow warnings cover snow and ice and warn of difficult driving conditions and the likelihood of travel disruption as a result.

The Met Office has issued severe weather warnings for the next three days with flurries possible as far south as London and Kent.

Up to four inches of snow is likely to fall over high ground with accumulations of around two inches expected at lower levels.

Met Office forecaster Alex Burkill said: “Temperatures are going to remain below average and it will stay cold and unsettled for the rest of this week and into the weekend.

“The next weather front moves in later on Thursday before moving eastwards through Friday, there could be sleet or snow on Thursday night into Friday on the northern edge of this.

“It will be quite windy in parts so there could be some drifting snow which could add to any transport difficulties.

“Generally we are looking at snow accumulations of two to five centimetres [two inches] above 200 metres and 10cm [four inches] above 300 metres.

”The RAC warned motorists to take extra care on the roads over the coming days with sheet ice threatening hazardous driving conditions.

Spokesman Rod Dennis said: “With the threat of some wintry showers, especially in the north of the UK, motorists will once again need to take extra care.

“Our advice is to drive more slowly, check local weather and travel reports regularly.”